Finding the upside: Antler portfolio companies responding to COVID-19

It has been incredible to see over the last few weeks how our portfolio companies are supporting their customers and communities during this global pandemic. They are doing this either through their existing solutions or pivoting so they can more appropriately address one of the pain points of the COVID-19 crisis. We are very proud of them.

We have put together a (non-exhaustive) list of those companies and we will continue to update it to reflect these incredible initiatives. If you are interested in learning more about what they do or are in a position to help these companies in any way please reach out to them:

Artificial Intelligence

Singapore startup Cognicept, offers a human-in-the-loop robot intervention system and teleoperation service. During the current global crisis they have pledged to donate this service to anyone using robots to reduce the effects of COVID-19.

EdTech

Chat-based intelligent tutoring platform, Enlight Ed are actively working with colleges, vocational institutes, and schools to support homeschooling efforts. Since schools around the world have been forced to shut their doors Enlight Ed have opened up their exercise creation environment for teachers to create their own exercises.

FinTech

Touch-less payment platform, Way is doubling efforts to meet increased demand for their service during COVID-19. Way’s platform works by simply pointing your camera at the item you want and paying with the saved payment method, and you’re ready to go. Stores can add Way on top of their existing point-of-sale solution to increase conversion, reduce cost and gain new customer insights.

Foodtech

For many years, home-cooked food has been losing market share to convenience food. In extreme cases, this trend manifested itself in "kitchen-less living”. Then came COVID-19 and wiped the slate clean. Everyone is cooking again. This fundamental shift has encouraged Lunch.Co to make a C2C pivot - to bring the marketplace for home cooking straight to the communities and to the users in the time of great need.

HealthTech

3D printed prosthesis implant company, Fusedbone took time from scaling their business to develop and launch an open source, low-cost and easy to build UV sanitizer for hospitals and healthcare centres. If you’re a hospital in need you can see the project and download the build files here. With this simple yet effective solution, hospitals can sanitize a wide range of their tools and equipment like masks, respirators or air valves in less than 1 minute and reuse them.

AI-powered solution, Vamstar connects buyers and contracts together in the healthcare industry. For healthcare systems to better prepare and plan for the months ahead during this crisis, Vamstar has created a risk-based framework to understand the gaps in supply chain and the evolving demand in European markets. To help spot vulnerable parts of healthcare systems in Europe and facilitate decision making as quickly as possible.

Visible Health believes that every child deserves specialized care. Since the outbreak of COVID-19 they have continued to work on a strategy to help parents navigate treatment required for their children affected by developmental delays by building an intelligent map to help parents get the best information and care for their children.

A platform built to make health screenings simpler, NYC-based Within Health is playing a proactive role in the current health crisis. Not only has the company started providing telehealth services in addition to radiology health screens, they are also utilizing chest x-ray and CT screens to serve individuals impacted by Covid-19. These exams are useful for triage and assessing how a patient’s lungs are affected by the disease. Beyond merely providing the service to individuals, Within Health is reaching out to local governments and hospital systems in order to further help reduce the load on healthcare workers. They now also offer free access to primary care licensed physicians through their telehealth platform so users can check in on themselves without having to visit a medical facility.

HRTech

Sama, a platform built to address labour exchange in Singapore has now pivoted to address COVID-19 by offering a solution for companies seeking to transfer foreign construction workers across sectors to manage their manpower needs during COVID-19. They hope to help workers find jobs while helping companies fulfil their labour needs. They would love to hear from companies in Singapore that are looking to cross-deploy workers on a short-term basis.

Australian startup, Scouta connects hiring teams and top talent at the world's fastest-growing companies. Many employees have recently had their roles negatively impacted by the effects of COVID-19. So Scouta are lending a hand to those employees who are in between jobs, recently let go or part of a company that is no longer operating. Whether you’re a candidate or a business in the startup community you can get more info here.

InsurTech

Upcover are built as an insurance provider for the regular gig worker. But since COVID-19, they are working to launch a COVID-19 resource page for gig workers in Australia as well as a petition to help support those on temporary visas that are currently excluded from Government support.

SaaS/Logistics

Avertro has always emphasized bringing science into cyber storytelling. With so much global uncertainty occurring during this epidemic, Avertro are now offering free cyber readiness assessments and exercises to businesses to help them shore up their cybersecurity strategy and spend within a COVID-19 affected world.

Providing groceries at good prices to bulk buyers has always been the ethos of ChapChap GO, and now during this crisis they are doubling efforts. From the ChapChapGO mobile first platform, they have been able to coordinate and process the delivery of customised bulk care packages to recipient communities. They continue to work with the necessary government coordination agencies to ensure that products sourced and distributed through the ChapChapGO platform adhere to the extraordinary requirements in this difficult time.

OceanOps offer dynamic rerouting of ocean freight and to assist with supply chain issues caused by COVID-19, they are offering parts of their platform for free. They are also providing free guidance to mitigate shipment delays to anyone who is shipping medical supplies or foodstuff as ocean freight. If you are experiencing such issues you can use the contact page on their website to get in touch.

Teemly’s virtual office platform allows physically distributed colleagues to connect and collaborate seamlessly. They are working tirelessly to meet the demands of companies worldwide that have been forced to work remotely by helping them build a one-office-culture that fosters both formal and informal interactions during COVID-19.

Sustainability

Australian waste management service, RecycleSmart has implemented contactless PickUps and strict hygiene protocols to ensure the highest level of safety for customers during COVID-19. This month, they will provide free pickup service for all residents in Sutherland Shire and Randwick City Australia to help people continue recycling while staying home.

Marketing and Communications

As in-person communication has become severely reduced, most industries are looking for alternatives to connect with their communities online. Leveraging AI & social data science, SpeechifAI is helping both enterprises and non-profit organizations write and manage sharable, social media posts that can make real impact at scale. Check out what they can do for you, and find an example of a COVID-19 client campaign they've created here.

If you know of any way to support these companies please reach out to them via their websites or find out more about them here.